Jurgen Van Den Broeck went into the Vuelta a Espana without any pressure and with no big ambitions in the overall rankings. Today he dropped out of GC contention when he lost 8 minutes but his Lotto Belisol team claims that he is not disappointed with the outcome.

Following an illness-plagued Tour de France, Jurgen Van Den Broeck has lined up at the Vuelta a Espana with an open mind, seeing what he can achieve during the race. Today it became apparent that he won't play a role in the GC as he lost more than 8 minutes in the tough stage 4.

"We had already said that we would take it day by day," sports director Jean-Pierre Heynderickx told Spoza. "Today Jurgen felt that he couldn't compete with the best in the steepest section. He didn't have a good feeling in his legs. It was pointless to insist.

"Jurgen is not sick. It just didn't work for him. But we came here without GC ambitions. I won't say it is already over but it will be difficult," he said, referring to the fact that Bart De Clercq lost even more time than Van Den Broeck and Maxime Monfort lost a bit of time in yesterday's stage.

"He [Van Den Broeck] is heading here without stress. In the next few days, he will choose a few stages. Today it wan't to be. It is very simple.

"De Clercq did not feel good. Maybe the heat plays a role. It's been three days with more than 40 degrees. Some handle it better than others."